Softball Equipment Guide

This article will describe softball equipment that your daughter should bring with her or wear, and the equipment that the league provides.

Personal equipment that each player is REQUIRED to bring:

• Glove:  Each player must bring their own glove.  It is worn on the hand that they do NOT throw with.  If your daughter writes with her right hand she will almost certainly throw with her right hand, so she will wear the glove on her left hand.  The glove should be made of leather, not vinyl or other man-made material because the leather can be broken in...man-made materials will never get any better with use.  The glove should be big enough to fit a softball inside easily but not so big that your daughter can't control it or close it.  Dicks Sporting Goods in Nassau Park is an official sponsor of West Windsor Little League and has a terrific selection of gloves.  Additionally, here is a good article on "breaking in" and a new glove. 
• • Fielding Face mask to wear when playing defense in the field (our experience tells us that metal ones are better than plastic)
  • • Softball cleats (sneakers or cleats from any other sport can also be used as long as the cleats on the bottom of the shoe are plastic)

Personal equipment that each player MAY CHOOSE to bring:

• Batting helmet with mask (get one with a mask that is light enough and well balanced so it stays on straight)
• Bat (before you spend a small fortune on a bat ask for advice)
• Heart-guard shirt (protects players from rare but dangerous injuries from getting hit by a thrown or hit ball; most important for pitchers)
• Equipment bag (with hooks to fasten it to most dugout fences)
• Each girl should buy a softball so she can practice at home with parents, siblings, or friends.
• If your daughter wears glasses, she should wear some sort of glasses.  If she wears a mask on her helmet and in the field, her regular glasses may be fine.  Otherwise, you can consider some sort of protective glasses, such as "rec specs".

Personal equipment supplied by the league:  Each team is assigned an equipment bag that contains the following equipment:

• Helmets (but yes, these are to be shared among all the girls on the team).  For hygenic reasons you may wish to purchase your daughter's own helmet.
• Bats
• Catchers's gear
• Practice and Game softballs